The seeds along the path are those who hear, but the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.
Parallel translations
- WEB Those along the road are those who hear, then the devil comes, and takes away the word from their heart, that they may not believe and be saved.
- KJV Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
- NKJV Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
- NASB And those beside the road are the ones who have heard, then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved.
- NLT The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The seed on the path is those who hear, but the devil snatches the word away so they cannot believe and be saved. Spiritual opposition aims to keep hearers from faith.
Overview
Jesus identifies the hardened path as hearers from whom Satan removes the word before it can take hold. The verse reveals an active enemy at work in the preaching of the Gospel. It also affirms that the word is meant to lead to belief and salvation, the very thing the devil seeks to prevent.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- 2 Th 2:9–14The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder,
- Rev 12:9And the great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
- Matt 13:19When anyone hears the message of the kingdom but does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.
- Mark 4:15Some are like the seeds along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.
- Prov 1:24–26Because you refused my call, and no one took my outstretched hand,
- Prov 4:5Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn from them.
- Jas 1:23–24For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror,
- Luke 8:5“A farmer went out to sow his seed. And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, where it was trampled, and the birds of the air devoured it.
- Isa 65:11But you who forsake the LORD, who forget My holy mountain, who set a table for Fortune and fill bowls of mixed wine for Destiny,
- Prov 1:29For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the LORD.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 8:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.